Bustin’ Down The Door – Film Screening with Q&A

A groundbreaking Australian film that captures the moment surfing changed forever.

United States | 2008 | English | Documentary | M

Bustin’ Down the Door is a landmark documentary that chronicles surfing’s transformation from counterculture pastime to professional sport—and it’s considered one of the most important surf films ever made.

Narrated by Edward Norton, the film centres on the winter of 1975, when a group of young surfers from Australia and South Africa—including Shaun Tomson, Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew, Ian Cairns, Mark Richards, and Peter Townend—descended on Hawaii’s North Shore with radical new techniques and brash attitudes that contrasted sharply with the traditional Hawaiian approach. Their bold confidence and self-promotion led to intense cultural clashes, turf wars, and eventually death threats. Despite the hostility, they persevered, knowing their audacious style would revolutionise the sport of surfing forever.

This screening is followed by a Q&A with Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew.

Presented by Sydney Opera House and Tracks